


Brother of Mine Turned Animal

by Ange_de_la_Mort



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Blood and Gore, Dehumanization, Gore, M/M, Mentioned Cannibalism, Teeth, teeth pulling
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-19
Updated: 2018-06-19
Packaged: 2019-05-25 11:18:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,766
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14976050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ange_de_la_Mort/pseuds/Ange_de_la_Mort
Summary: It's the worst day of Shiro's and Ulaz's lives - and for Shiro, it's the last one.





	Brother of Mine Turned Animal

**Author's Note:**

> Originally written for the Eternal Eclipse - Dark Voltron zine.

The Champion flinched as Haxus entered its cell and looked at him with a questioning gaze and a frown. It tilted its head a little, almost as if it recognized Haxus, almost as if there was a single shred of knowledge and intellect shimmering in its eyes, but the impression faded as quickly as it had arisen (not that Haxus actually cared if the human had remembered him from whenever he had been forced to waste his time watching its fights. He had been scrutinizing it, choosing it, deciding whether it would be _the one_ or not).  
  
"What is wrong?" it asked, the words coming out of its mouth in a broken, primitive kind of Galran dialect. "No fight today?"  
  
Haxus shook his head. "No fight today," he repeated and crossed his arms in front of his chest to give himself a moment to think of how to proceed, how to make sure the human would understand that it was supposed to follow Haxus without giving away too much. He settled for a quiet sigh and a snarl: "Examination. Now. Come with me."  
  
Even though the Champion surely understood the words (it _had_ to, as much as Haxus was dumbing himself down for all intents and purposes), it didn't move at all. Instead, it simply kept on staring even more confused than before. "I am not sick."  
  
 _Good for you._ He would have rolled his eyes, but managed to keep his face neutral. There was no time to lose, the first deliveries had to be shipped this very night. No time to waste, not with stupid little creatures like a human. "A routine," he said, and when the human's face lit up in understanding, Haxus quietly smiled to himself, turning on his heel and leaving the small cell, the human in tow.  
  
-  
  
Ulaz didn't manage to keep his eyes away from the two Sentries that were keeping him company in the laboratory. They weren't armed, sure, but that didn't mean they were harmless. Even without weapons, they could still fight, and Ulaz was not sure if he'd be able to knock both of them down if anything were to happen. He hadn't been told the reason why the sentries had accompanied him to this room - "Commander Sendak's orders" was all they'd said. How very vague. It made him feel uncertain. After all, those could be orders _for_ Ulaz, some he would hopefully be told as soon as possible, or orders for the Sentries - and those could be anything, including attacking him for being a spy.  
  
But they couldn't know, could they? He had been so very careful to never contact the Blades in plain view ...  
  
When the door slid open, Ulaz raised his head. And when he saw just who had entered the room, his heart sank and the fine hairs on his arms and on the back of his neck stood up in shock. For a tick, he forgot to breathe.  
  
They know, he thought as his eyes took hold of Shiro's worried glances and Lieutenant Haxus' self-satisfied smile. _They know_. His fingers twitched. That was why the Sentries were here: As guards to make sure he - and Shiro - couldn't run away. As executors, as witnesses to the downfall of a rebel and his potential ally. "What," he asked and cleared his throat. "What does this mean?"  
  
Shiro looked at him in confusion. It was obvious he'd hoped for Ulaz to provide some kind of reassurance and explanation to ease his own fears. Ulaz hated disappointing him. "A ... routine examination. It's what - " Shiro nodded into Haxus' direction. "- he said to me."  
  
When Ulaz turned his attention to Haxus, all he received was a curt nod and a muttered "Proceed with that". Well ... Lacking other options, he turned to Shiro and asked him to strip, while still observing Haxus out of the corners of his eyes. He was cautious to make sure not to show any of the many feelings, of the thoughts and worries running wild in his head. As soon as Shiro had taken off the skintight suit and the torn shirt, he rushed to examine his bodily conditions, his movements sharp and distanced, uttering the standard phrases that any doctor would tell his patient. He wanted nothing more but for this to be over with. It was better for the both of them.  
  
Still, once or twice his fingers lingered on Shiro's body, a hand on his arm, fingertips brushing over his wrists to wordlessly tell him that he was safe with Ulaz. Here and everywhere else. Ulaz would always be there to keep him safe. Then, he turned around to face Haxus. "He is in excellent health."  
  
"Good to hear." Haxus snapped his fingers and, in the blink of an eye, the Sentries came to life, using Ulaz' surprise to shove him out of the way before they both grabbed Shiro's wrist and arms and - however much Shiro protested, however much he tried to defend himself - held him down on the lab table. The metal bonds clicked in place, firmly closing around Shiro's ankles and wrists.  
  
„What do you think you're doing?“ Ulaz asked angrily, stepping between the Sentries and Shiro, between _Haxus_ and Shiro. It was the least he could do to protect him.  
  
But Haxus simply chose to ignore him, stepping around him. When Ulaz raised his hand to grab him by the collar, one of the Sentries closed its metal hand around his wrist, holding him tightly, while Haxus walked towards the lab table, scrutinizing Shiro like a disgusting but nonetheless fascinating insect. He put his clawed fingers to Shiro's chin, forcing him to look Haxus in the eye. "Say, human. How long have you been here?"  
  
Ulaz watches Shiro's gaze flicker between the two Galra. He has no idea what to say. _He's searching for someone – for me – to protect him. But I can't. I-_  
  
"Just answer the question," growled Haxus, digging his claws into the tender flesh of Shiro's cheeks.  
  
The pained sound that came out of Shiro's mouth hit Ulaz as much as any blow to the stomach.  
  
"I don't ... I ... maybe three-hundred quintants?"  
  
"Ah." Haxus made a satisfied noise and patted Shiro's cheek. "What a clever pet, don't you think?" he asked, looking at Ulaz. "And how long have you been our Champion?"  
  
Realization hit Ulaz like a bucket of cold water dumped over his head. "No. No, that must be a mistake. It can't have been -"  
  
"A year already? Oh, but it has." The glee in Haxus' eyes was sickening.  
  
"... Ulaz?" whispered Shiro, eyes widened in fear and insecurity. Shiro. His Shiro. Their Shiro. Their secret weapon. His friend and ... more. He was asking for him, for an explanation, for his help.  
  
Ulaz was frozen in place.  
  
"You see," Haxus said and bent down further above Shiro, looming over him. His teeth were reflecting the purple light flooding the room, making them look larger, sharper than they actually were. For a moment, Ulaz was worried that Haxus would just pounce Shiro and rip his throat out with his teeth (even if that would be an almost merciful death, a faster one than the one that would be coming if Ulaz didn't interfere, if he didn't figure out a plan to annul this tradition and/or use violence to free Shiro and himself). "We are a proud race. A strong one. However, some of us are also weirdly superstitious. We believe in the inevitable- "  
  
Haxus fell silent for a moment, then raised his eyebrows and grimaced before continuing: "We believe that everyone will fail someday. Have you never wondered why there was no Champion before you? It's because on the anniversary of their first victory - at the peak of their strength -, we relieve them of their duties to let them serve a higher cause."  
  
"I don't ... I can't ..." Shiro shook his head and Ulaz could see the desperation in his bright eyes, the glances shifting from Haxus' face to the table full of medical tools and, lastly, to Ulaz. "I don't understand."  
  
Haxus clucked his tongue and petted Shiro's cheek almost gently. "Of course you don't. I wouldn't expect this kind of knowledge from a human pet." He tilted his head to one and then to the other side, raised a hand to his chin, stroking it as if deep in thought. "Maybe Ulaz wants to explain it to you?"  
  
But Ulaz didn't want to. Ulaz couldn't. He was frozen in horror and in the knowledge of what they would now ask of him, of what he would be forced to do. _They know_ , he thought again, because if they didn't, they could use anyone else to adhere to the tradition.  
  
"No? Not volunteering this time? Unlike when you took the little pet in and 'taught' it all you knew?" Haxus exhaled audibly and Ulaz wasn't sure if he was sighing or laughing. "Well then, let me make it simple to you, pet." Again, he bowed down over Shiro, extending a hand to grab him by the hair, forcing his head back to bring his lips close to Shiro's skin. "We will cut you into pieces," he purred into his ear and Ulaz flinched as Haxus licked Shiro's cheek. "And eat you to gain a bit of your strength and luck."  
  
"No!" This was the moment when Shiro suddenly came alive, when he struggled and reared against his chains, so hard that Ulaz almost feared he'd tear off his skin and break his bones. ... it would only bring him more pain, it wouldn't save him.  
  
"Ulaz! Ulaz, please don't do that to me! Please don't ..." The look in Shiro's eyes was unbearable, the pleading in his voice as well, in the quiet, hasty words of his strange human language he taught Ulaz, the one they'd spoken in quite a few long nights. "Please have mercy."  
  
Ulaz had to turn away. "I wouldn't know what to so with him," he said to Haxus, trying to gain himself – the both of them – more time. Maybe there'd be a miracle that would save Shiro from death and Ulaz from damnation.  
  
"Really?” A disbelieving sound escaped Haxus' lips. “You know the rules, Ulaz. You know the correct order. Bones and teeth for the druids, flesh and blood for the warriors. And its still beating heart for our Emperor." Haxus shrugged his shoulders and let his fingers roam Shiro's body, over his chest and stomach down to his hips. He ignored Shiro's futile attempts at struggling, at escaping. "You know, you might even keep its dick if that means anything to you."  
  
 _They know_ , he thought again and let his shoulders sag, having no choice than to accept that he'd lost. That he hadn't been able to be the savior he'd wanted to be. "Let me- let me sedate him at least."  
  
But Haxus was without _mercy_. That was a word a Galra didn't know. "No. That would taint its blood."  
  
"But I ... "  
  
"You seem to still hold the belief that you have a _choice_ , Ulaz. But you don't. It's not your decision to make. It's Zarkon's. And right now, it's mine." Haxus leaned against him, almost like an old friend that wanted to share a joke with him, the crooked, satisfied smile still on his lips. "It's either _you_ do as you are told or _I_ rip your head off right here, right now. And then _I_ 'll take your place." He paused to let the weight of his words settle in, to make sure Ulaz knew there was no escape. Then, he continued, his voice thick with the mockery of concern: "I'm no doctor, Ulaz, I'm no professional. It might take you not even half a varga until you are finished, but I will need all day to get this done." He smiled, his teeth too sharp, too white, too close. “It will not be pretty.”  
  
It was the first time Ulaz actually turned towards the tools laid out for him. He shuddered looking at them and thinking of what they could become in Haxus' hands. And then he made a decision that would seal the loss of his innocence: When Haxus offered him the slim, silvery pincers … he accepted them.  
  
Shiro screamed his name, but the Sentries were on him in a second, holding him down, gripping his jaws, his mouth, forcing his lips apart.  
  
"Maybe you should hold its tongue down," Haxus suggested helpfully while watching over his shoulder. "If you catch it there, it'll bleed all over itself. Wouldn't be any good if it choked on its own blood, now, would it?"  
  
It took every bit of willpower for Ulaz not to turn around and break his neck. But he knew he could only take out one of them, only one out of three, and he also knew that there were dozens, hundreds of Galra and Sentries patrolling outside. So he swallowed the bile in his throat and nodded. With the fingers of one hand, he pushed down Shiro's tongue, with the other, he brought the pincers to his jaw, closing them around the first front tooth.  
  
"Forgive me," he murmured, in this secret, strange human language that only belonged to the two of them. "Forgive me," he repeated, knowing that there were things that could not be forgiven.  
  
And then he pulled.  
  
Until the tiny, white tooth came out of its socket, accompanied by a stream of blood.  
  
Shiro screamed, rearing up, but the ties around his wrists and the Sentries holding open his jaw were too strong. He couldn't escape as Ulaz brought down the pincers again, as the next tooth was ripped out of his gums with a wet sound.  
  
And the next one.  
  
Again and again.  
  
Until there was nothing left of Shiro's teeth, until the screaming had stopped and turned into choked sobs. The large holes in his gums let Ulaz see down to Shiro's jawbone, almost let him see right up to his brain.  
  
One of the Sentries let go of Shiro's jaw and started to gather up the teeth, putting them into a small bowl. For later. For the druids.  
  
"You are doing so good, Ulaz," murmured Haxus quietly and put a hand on Ulaz' shoulder. "Lord Zarkon will be relieved to hear my report. He had always thought so much of you, he'll be happy to know you truly are one of us. I mean … a rebel spy could never do something this despicable to an innocent being, but you - you are a true Galran warrior, aren't you?"  
  
Ulaz wanted to retch.  
  
Instead, he forced himself to tear his eyes away from Shiro, from what had been his face, his mouth. There was nothing left of the smile he'd liked so much.  
  
His fingers wrapped around the scalpel Haxus held out to him. There was no turning back. He couldn't change it. He could only make sure it was over quickly.  
  
Shiro let out a few noises that were supposed to be words, but Ulaz couldn't understand them anymore, couldn't say if it was because he'd destroyed so much of Shiro already or if he'd gone back to his mother tongue, begging for his life with strange, unknown words.  
  
It didn't matter.  
  
The first, important cut split Shiro's chest in half, muscles and sinews laid bare, being pushed aside by Ulaz' hands. Without remorse, without this human thing called mercy. It was too late for any of that. Sweat dripped off his forehead as he tried to ignore the whimpers, tried to end it as quickly as possible.  
  
When he ripped the beating heart out of Shiro's chest, a part of himself died as well. He could see the light in Shiro's eyes disappear, could see them become dull and empty.  
  
As the heart in his fingers slowly stilled, Haxus took it from him. "I will take this and deliver it to the Emperor." He nodded in appreciation. "Good work, Ulaz. Keep it up. Cut the meat and stash it for our brothers and sisters. The Sentries will aid you. Vrepit Sa," he said, already turning around and leaving the room.  
  
And when he left Ulaz alone, he left him with nothing but grief and despair and the terrible, unwavering oath to cut the Empire down once and for all.  
  
And even as his bloody fingers clutched around the bone saw, even as he cut Shiro's lifeless body into pieces, he knew that his friend's and lover's screams would haunt him until he had avenged his death – or joined him in the eternal hall of fallen warriors.


End file.
